Status
Available
Call number
Description
Fiction. Mystery. Science Fiction. Thriller. HTML: A bishop is dead. As Detective Inspector Adam Ferguson picks through the rubble of the tiny church, he discovers that it was deliberately bombed. That it's a terrorist act is soon beyond doubt. It's been a long time since anyone saw anything like this. Terrorism is history ...After the Middle East wars and the rising sea levels - after Armageddon and the Flood - came the Great Rejection. The first Enlightenment separated church from state. The Second Enlightenment has separated religion from politics. In this enlightened age there's no persecution, but the millions who still believe and worship are a marginal and mistrusted minority. Now someone is killing them. At first, suspicion falls on atheists more militant than the secular authorities. But when the target list expands to include the godless, it becomes evident that something very old has risen from the ashes. Old and very, very dangerous ....… (more)
Pages
324
DDC/MDS
| 823.914 |
Language
Awards
Locus Award (Nominee — Science Fiction Novel — 2009)
British Science Fiction Association Award (Shortlist — Novel — 2008)
Locus Recommended Reading (2008)
The Guardian 1000 Novels Everyone Must Read (Science Fiction and Fantasy)
User reviews
LibraryThing member RobertDay
The British Left was notorious for its factionalism; for Ken MacLeod, it provided a rich vein which he mined assiduously in nine out of his first ten novels. He barely had to repeat himself across the span of those books. But in 'The Night Sessions', his eleventh novel, he turns to another
This is almost a book that might have been written as a collaboration between three friends - MacLeod, Iain (M.) Banks and Ian Rankin, because there are elements of the work of each in here. From MacLeod, the factionalism and the near-future setting. From Banks, the sardonic robots. And from Rankin, an independent Scotland and the Edinburgh-based police procedural. It's a tribute to the closeness of their friendship that the result is so seamless; and that MacLeod saw no need to mention this in the dedications.
The setting is also something that all three had in common; and Edinburgh is something of an underlying character in the story. I know Edinburgh slightly, and it came alive for me in a satisfying way. The plot itself is a reasonably straightforward procedural, but in a mid- to late-21st century where the War on Terror became a war against fundamentalist religion of all shades. In the complex back story, that war on religion resulted in a wholesale turning of the back on religion, which is now practiced in private. It isn't exactly banned, but faith plays no official part in public life in any way. Even the USA has passed the 31rd Amendment to the Constitution, completely removing religion from the establishment of the state.
Against this background, a priest is assassinated in a letter bomb incident. DI Adam Ferguson and his sidekick robot, an ex-military Law Enforcement Kinetic Intelligence (or 'leki') called Skulk, have to try to find out whether this is someone with old scores to settle, possibly from Ireland, or possibly from the priest's time in the military. Or is it something new?
Along the way, MacLeod asks questions about faith, intelligence, and whether AIs can have souls. A preacher from New Zealand who works in a creationist country park is somehow involved. And meanwhile, the days are punctuated by regular eclipses as the soletas, giant orbital sunshades intended to try to alleviate global warming that has brought hot summers to Scotland, slide across the sky.
The scope of this novel is great, and it asks big questions. The conclusion is well thought out, though that does mean that it doesn't end with a big set-piece action scene. No matter. There are some minor loose ends in the plot, but nothing that should seriously upset the reader. This is fully up to MacLeod's usual standard.
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sub-culture almost as factionally-riven: Scottish Presbyterianism.This is almost a book that might have been written as a collaboration between three friends - MacLeod, Iain (M.) Banks and Ian Rankin, because there are elements of the work of each in here. From MacLeod, the factionalism and the near-future setting. From Banks, the sardonic robots. And from Rankin, an independent Scotland and the Edinburgh-based police procedural. It's a tribute to the closeness of their friendship that the result is so seamless; and that MacLeod saw no need to mention this in the dedications.
The setting is also something that all three had in common; and Edinburgh is something of an underlying character in the story. I know Edinburgh slightly, and it came alive for me in a satisfying way. The plot itself is a reasonably straightforward procedural, but in a mid- to late-21st century where the War on Terror became a war against fundamentalist religion of all shades. In the complex back story, that war on religion resulted in a wholesale turning of the back on religion, which is now practiced in private. It isn't exactly banned, but faith plays no official part in public life in any way. Even the USA has passed the 31rd Amendment to the Constitution, completely removing religion from the establishment of the state.
Against this background, a priest is assassinated in a letter bomb incident. DI Adam Ferguson and his sidekick robot, an ex-military Law Enforcement Kinetic Intelligence (or 'leki') called Skulk, have to try to find out whether this is someone with old scores to settle, possibly from Ireland, or possibly from the priest's time in the military. Or is it something new?
Along the way, MacLeod asks questions about faith, intelligence, and whether AIs can have souls. A preacher from New Zealand who works in a creationist country park is somehow involved. And meanwhile, the days are punctuated by regular eclipses as the soletas, giant orbital sunshades intended to try to alleviate global warming that has brought hot summers to Scotland, slide across the sky.
The scope of this novel is great, and it asks big questions. The conclusion is well thought out, though that does mean that it doesn't end with a big set-piece action scene. No matter. There are some minor loose ends in the plot, but nothing that should seriously upset the reader. This is fully up to MacLeod's usual standard.
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LibraryThing member fred_mouse
Somewhat lengthy prologue, which managed to not trigger my 'what was the point of that!' response (I typically don't think that prologues are valuable; my usual exception is when they recap previous volume(s) in the series). It does contain a significant amount of nastiness of thinking from the
Fortunately, the rest of the story is mostly told from a different character's viewpoint. Sadly, this is a cop, who in passing mentions having (historically) been involved in significant police brutality. Thus, do not expect to find yourself particularly sympathising with the characters. The author has not made them sympathetic, but has made them interesting to read.
I like MacLeod's work - I find the writing captivating and the plots detailed and clever. That is definitely the case here, although --as with many thrillers--I did find aspects a bit over the top. Especially knowing that a particularly stressed section of the narrative was in fact not the peak, because thriller tropes would have one of the main characters at risk of life, limb, or liberty, and we weren't there yet. I was pleasantly surprised with how that particular trope was worked in to the story.
Overall, a rollicking good time was had, even though the topics were a bit grim. Themes relating to oppressive constant surveillance and data collecting were a bit overwhelming, although I felt that MacLeod's predictions were a bit more positive than your standard cyberpunk approach.
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viewpoint character, who holds some extreme religious views and expresses them offensively to another character. Fortunately, the rest of the story is mostly told from a different character's viewpoint. Sadly, this is a cop, who in passing mentions having (historically) been involved in significant police brutality. Thus, do not expect to find yourself particularly sympathising with the characters. The author has not made them sympathetic, but has made them interesting to read.
I like MacLeod's work - I find the writing captivating and the plots detailed and clever. That is definitely the case here, although --as with many thrillers--I did find aspects a bit over the top. Especially knowing that a particularly stressed section of the narrative was in fact not the peak, because thriller tropes would have one of the main characters at risk of life, limb, or liberty, and we weren't there yet. I was pleasantly surprised with how that particular trope was worked in to the story.
Overall, a rollicking good time was had, even though the topics were a bit grim. Themes relating to oppressive constant surveillance and data collecting were a bit overwhelming, although I felt that MacLeod's predictions were a bit more positive than your standard cyberpunk approach.
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LibraryThing member Surtac
[i]The Night Sessions[/i] by Ken MacLeod is his most recent novel, and it has already picked up the 2009 BSFA best novel award.
It is set in a near future Scotland (primarily) and New Zealand, some 30 or 40 years ahead of now (by my guess - it’s unclear from the book as I recall it). The Faith
In the aftermath of the Faith Wars, Western governments have spurned religion, and become fiercely secular. Christian fundamentalists have been driven from the US, and many have ended up in New Zealand, some even setting up a Creationist theme park. Some AIs/robots work in the park, and others use the park forests as a common retreat from human society.
In Scotland religion is no longer officially recognised but is now tolerated and no longer actively suppressed. DI Alex Ferguson is a veteran of the God Squad police units and remorseful about his old duties. His off-sider, Skulk, is an ex-military AI (called a LEKI) now housed in a body reminiscent of a tripod from the HG Wells’ War Of the Worlds, but much smaller.
In Edinburgh, a Catholic priest is killed by a homemade bomb. Ferguson is assigned to investigate.
MacLeod has here written what was, to me, two distinct novels. One is a futuristic police procedural, the other is an examination of the nature of religion and dogmatism – one that also asks the question: can an AI have a soul? If machine intelligences are possible, are they then susceptible to the attractions of organized religion? And if they are, how might that play out taken to its logical extreme?
The book works well for me on both levels. In some ways it’s difficult to see the Edinburgh setting and not think of Ian Rankine’s Rebus or Jardine’s Bob Skinner, but MacLeod does a good job of combining the (literary) familiar and the societal changes of its future setting. I also liked the way he updates the police procedural format with the newer technologies available (clearly extrapolated from modern IT in the main) but preserves its essential nature at the same time.
Morgan’s Black Man universe can be seen as an interesting counterpoint to this book in a way: in that book, America’s religious fundamentalists prevailed and Jesusland was created. In [i]The Night Sessions[/i], MacLeod considers an alternate result and I found myself wondering which of those two possible futures is more likely to occur from where we all stand right now.
MacLeod has written a thought provoking book that also entertains d*mn well.
Recommended.
It is set in a near future Scotland (primarily) and New Zealand, some 30 or 40 years ahead of now (by my guess - it’s unclear from the book as I recall it). The Faith
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Wars (also known as the Oil Wars) are over and the West lost. Nuclear weapons were used on the plains of Meggido. Two space elevators have been built. Giant solar sails help protect the Earth from further warming. Artificial intelligences exist, some of which became self-aware in battlefield epiphanies where they were serving as the controllers of autonomous war robots. Humanoid robots are no longer readily produced.In the aftermath of the Faith Wars, Western governments have spurned religion, and become fiercely secular. Christian fundamentalists have been driven from the US, and many have ended up in New Zealand, some even setting up a Creationist theme park. Some AIs/robots work in the park, and others use the park forests as a common retreat from human society.
In Scotland religion is no longer officially recognised but is now tolerated and no longer actively suppressed. DI Alex Ferguson is a veteran of the God Squad police units and remorseful about his old duties. His off-sider, Skulk, is an ex-military AI (called a LEKI) now housed in a body reminiscent of a tripod from the HG Wells’ War Of the Worlds, but much smaller.
In Edinburgh, a Catholic priest is killed by a homemade bomb. Ferguson is assigned to investigate.
MacLeod has here written what was, to me, two distinct novels. One is a futuristic police procedural, the other is an examination of the nature of religion and dogmatism – one that also asks the question: can an AI have a soul? If machine intelligences are possible, are they then susceptible to the attractions of organized religion? And if they are, how might that play out taken to its logical extreme?
The book works well for me on both levels. In some ways it’s difficult to see the Edinburgh setting and not think of Ian Rankine’s Rebus or Jardine’s Bob Skinner, but MacLeod does a good job of combining the (literary) familiar and the societal changes of its future setting. I also liked the way he updates the police procedural format with the newer technologies available (clearly extrapolated from modern IT in the main) but preserves its essential nature at the same time.
Morgan’s Black Man universe can be seen as an interesting counterpoint to this book in a way: in that book, America’s religious fundamentalists prevailed and Jesusland was created. In [i]The Night Sessions[/i], MacLeod considers an alternate result and I found myself wondering which of those two possible futures is more likely to occur from where we all stand right now.
MacLeod has written a thought provoking book that also entertains d*mn well.
Recommended.
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LibraryThing member AlanPoulter
This book takes place in 2021, in Edinburgh, where I live, and Rotorua, New Zealand, which I visited when I worked for four months in Wellington. The only incongruity I spotted was the lead character, DI Adam Ferguson, jumping on and off trams in a variety of locations in Edinburgh, which now seems
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unlikely given the recent cutbacks in the planned routes. The 'night sessions' link these two locations, as they are sermons, given in the morning in New Zealand but listened to live in the evening in Scotland. John Richard Campbell, who gives these sermons, is a free-thinking theologian, who contemplates, among other things, whether intelligent robots can have souls. This is more dangerous than might be expected, as the world is now resolutely secular, after a nuclear exchange in the Middle East. Space is slowly being tamed, aided by two ocean-based orbital elevators. DI Ferguson earned his spurs in the police in the period which saw churches dis-established, and believers dispersed, sometimes by force. A murder of an ex-Catholic priest leads to an escalating series of incidents for DI Ferguson to investigate, aided by his robot sidekick Skulk (an ex-war droid). It seems as though an obscure religious sect are trying to bring on the "end of days", according to some printed religious tracts found in the few remaining churches in Edinburgh. It is no coincidence that the anniversary of 9/11 is nigh. Unlike Ken Macleod's previous novels, politics takes a back seat to religion, and the result is an excellent police-procedural/thriller, with an unexpected twist as to motive. There are plenty of throw-away clever details, such as the need to back up hackable/volatile crime scene digital data with hand-written notes and drawings. If trams might not be ubiquitous in 2021 Edinburgh, at least global warming will have kicked in, so that one can arrive at the airport "to be welcomed by a hot Scottish summer"! Show Less
LibraryThing member edgeworth
The Night Sessions, by Scottish author Ken Macleod, is a police procedural set in near-future Scotland and New Zealand after a series of catastrophic “Faith Wars” have resulted in most Western countries adopting a hardline approach to separation of church and state. The state has an official
The Night Sessions begins on shaky ground, with a prologue in which a New Zealand priest flying to Scotland has a conversation with a fellow plane passenger about faith which is the very definition of hammy; later he meets some subculture youth at a nightclub who are also oddly happy to discuss the finer points of theology, spouting Sorkinesque zingers complete with ludicrously specific Bible passages. (Why would people keep that information tucked away in their head for debating purposes, in a world where you’d be highly unlikely to ever meet a believer?) Macleod is on firmer ground as The Night Sessions gets properly underway, couched in the familiar language of a crime novel: police lingo, helpful crime investigation exposition, and undersketched characters referred to by surname. But as this wears on it fits oddly with Macleod’s ostensibly grand preoccupation with questions of faith and artificial intelligence, and I felt the novel’s philosophical reach outstretched its grasp. The Night Sessions is readable enough, but never amounts to much.
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policy of “non-cognisance,” meaning people’s religious beliefs are kept entirely private and not recognised by the state; the actual situation appears to be more social than official, with religious belief having dwindled to a select few anyway. The novel begins with Edinburgh Detective Adam Ferguson responding to an explosion which turns out to be a letter-bomb mailed to a Catholic priest, leading on to the usual deep layers of conspiracy and epic plots foiled etc.The Night Sessions begins on shaky ground, with a prologue in which a New Zealand priest flying to Scotland has a conversation with a fellow plane passenger about faith which is the very definition of hammy; later he meets some subculture youth at a nightclub who are also oddly happy to discuss the finer points of theology, spouting Sorkinesque zingers complete with ludicrously specific Bible passages. (Why would people keep that information tucked away in their head for debating purposes, in a world where you’d be highly unlikely to ever meet a believer?) Macleod is on firmer ground as The Night Sessions gets properly underway, couched in the familiar language of a crime novel: police lingo, helpful crime investigation exposition, and undersketched characters referred to by surname. But as this wears on it fits oddly with Macleod’s ostensibly grand preoccupation with questions of faith and artificial intelligence, and I felt the novel’s philosophical reach outstretched its grasp. The Night Sessions is readable enough, but never amounts to much.
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LibraryThing member SimonChamberlain
This is the other 'science-fiction/detective story set in future Edinburgh' that I've read this year. MacLeod is one of the most intelligent sf writers out there - just reading his work you'll get an introduction to politics, technology, etc. This one's set in the 2020s, following a major war
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between the west and Islam, leading to a general loss of faith and second Enlightenment. Christians are officially ignored by the government. But then a priest is murdered...linked into the story is an American fundamentalist living in New Zealand, and a load of sentient robots. Another good story, with several twists that I didn't see coming. Show Less
LibraryThing member BillHall
A good sci-fi detective placed in the mid to late 21st Century Scotland and New Zealand after the holy/oil wars associated with the global warming holocaust.
By way of background, the various breeds of fundamentalists fought at Meggidio with nuclear weapons, but enough of the world survived so the
During the holy wars, some AI's in war machines were constructed as or became self-aware individuals, and afterwards these were given civil rights and new humanoid bodies. Many of the robots moved into space to work on the space elevators, moons, planets and asteroids. Others remaining on Earth developed their own society in New Zealand (where they lived rough in a creation science park), where they largely avoided interacting with people. A few ended up working with the Edinburgh police force, where they were known as lekis.
The main protagonists of the story are an Edinburgh police detective, his sentient robot pal and assorted fundamentalists along with an a couple of academics and virtual rave scene DJ.
The story begins in NZ with a young fundamentalist creationist preaching his interpretation of the gospel to some members of the robot community that happen to have contacts with a small group of human fundamentalists via a robot posing as a mutilado (war victim who has chosen to have injured body parts replaced by robotic prosthetics rather than accept regeneration via stem cell replacements). The mystery to be solved begins with the assassination by bombing of a Catholic priest who seemed to be an enemy of no one.
By this time several clues essential to the solution of the mystery have already been presented and the story rapidly develops from there as a compulsive page turner in a way that I think Agatha Christie would have approved.
All in all, the story does credit to both of its genres, the detective mystery and hard, idea-based sci-fi. To me, the only hint of weakness is in the conclusion to the story. It was surprizing and followed logically (as it should) from the development of the story, but was not as compelling for me as it might have been with perhaps a little more development and explanation of the killers' motivations.
By way of background, the various breeds of fundamentalists fought at Meggidio with nuclear weapons, but enough of the world survived so the
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big corporates were able to construct space elevators and soletas (orbiting sun shades) to begin to ameliorate the global warming. The major revulsion following the holy wars also led most countries (except New Zealand and USA) to marganilize all religions. Scotland had a policy of "non cognizance" where nothing to do with religion was officially recognized or mentioned, although a number of ex mainstream and fundamentalist religious sects survive with small numbers of loyal members.During the holy wars, some AI's in war machines were constructed as or became self-aware individuals, and afterwards these were given civil rights and new humanoid bodies. Many of the robots moved into space to work on the space elevators, moons, planets and asteroids. Others remaining on Earth developed their own society in New Zealand (where they lived rough in a creation science park), where they largely avoided interacting with people. A few ended up working with the Edinburgh police force, where they were known as lekis.
The main protagonists of the story are an Edinburgh police detective, his sentient robot pal and assorted fundamentalists along with an a couple of academics and virtual rave scene DJ.
The story begins in NZ with a young fundamentalist creationist preaching his interpretation of the gospel to some members of the robot community that happen to have contacts with a small group of human fundamentalists via a robot posing as a mutilado (war victim who has chosen to have injured body parts replaced by robotic prosthetics rather than accept regeneration via stem cell replacements). The mystery to be solved begins with the assassination by bombing of a Catholic priest who seemed to be an enemy of no one.
By this time several clues essential to the solution of the mystery have already been presented and the story rapidly develops from there as a compulsive page turner in a way that I think Agatha Christie would have approved.
All in all, the story does credit to both of its genres, the detective mystery and hard, idea-based sci-fi. To me, the only hint of weakness is in the conclusion to the story. It was surprizing and followed logically (as it should) from the development of the story, but was not as compelling for me as it might have been with perhaps a little more development and explanation of the killers' motivations.
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LibraryThing member gregandlarry
Good story with some interesting characters. Not too deep, though some interesting history.
LibraryThing member nmele
A mystery-thriller plot frames MacLeod's fascinating examination of religious and other forms off fanaticism and extremism, set in a familiar world of high-tech, political realignments and artificial intelligences. Quite a fascinating novel with more than a hint of redemption at its conclusion.
LibraryThing member kevinashley
Politics, Scotland, AI, religion, police, a space elevator - the raw ingredients of this novel are familiar to anyone who has read Macleod before but in this novel he makes something new of them. It's set primarily in Edinburgh, with a protagonist who is a seasoned policeman. He's lived through the
The novel opens with one of these fundamentalists - a Creationist - making a journey from his home in New Zealand to Scotland, specifically to Edinburgh. The focus rapidly shifts to our main protagonist, DI Adam Ferguson, an Edinburgh policeman assisted by an AI known as a Leki. A Catholic priest is dead - possibly in an accident, possibly not. As the investigation proceeds we see more of the varied cultures of this future Edinburgh, its hidden religious communities and processes of a high-tech police force that uses swarms of intelligent midges but still rides around on bicycles.
The setting is marvellous, the story-telling never lets up its pace, and Macleod has transferred his skill of portraying left-wing politics to religion effortlessly. A great read for anyone who likes his work, and a good start for those who have not encountered him before.
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periods of religious persecution that followed what many in the novel called The Faith Wars, which have left a functioning but decidedly post-apocalyptic world behind them. One of its characteristics is that the pursuit of religion of any sort is now a decidedly minority pursuit, tolerated but not officially recognised by the state. But there are pockets of fundamentalist Christianity in places in the world and they come to play a key role in what unfolds.The novel opens with one of these fundamentalists - a Creationist - making a journey from his home in New Zealand to Scotland, specifically to Edinburgh. The focus rapidly shifts to our main protagonist, DI Adam Ferguson, an Edinburgh policeman assisted by an AI known as a Leki. A Catholic priest is dead - possibly in an accident, possibly not. As the investigation proceeds we see more of the varied cultures of this future Edinburgh, its hidden religious communities and processes of a high-tech police force that uses swarms of intelligent midges but still rides around on bicycles.
The setting is marvellous, the story-telling never lets up its pace, and Macleod has transferred his skill of portraying left-wing politics to religion effortlessly. A great read for anyone who likes his work, and a good start for those who have not encountered him before.
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LibraryThing member jkdavies
I liked this a lot at the beginning, but by the end it faded a little. The near future Edinburgh settings were great, but for some reason I didn't find the robots too convincing
Publication
Orbit (2008), Edition: First Edition, 352 pages
Original language
English
Original publication date
2008-08
Physical description
324 p.
ISBN
1841496510 / 9781841496511